Results for America recently announced seven new winners of the Bloomberg Philanthropies’ What Works Cities Certification. The awards are open to any city in North, Central or South America with a population of 30,000 or more. The aim of the program is to “set a standard of excellence for data-informed, well-managed local government,” with the intent of helping to improve the city’s resiliency, crisis response time, economic mobility, public health, and resident satisfaction.
This year, the What Works Cities Certification was strengthened to include new equity and outcome requirements. These new requirements of the cities include: showing expertise in data management; demonstrating that they are managing their data with equity in mind; and showing that they are making real progress in policy areas that affect resident wellbeing.
“Local leaders around the world are tackling global challenges with data and evidence to make their communities stronger, safer, and more equitable,” said James Anderson, head of the Government Innovation program at Bloomberg Philanthropies. “By expanding and raising the bar to achieve What Works Cities Certification, we’re supporting the global spread of data best practices, and growing the movement of policymakers leading with data and using it to produce better results for residents and communities.”
The seven new cities are:
- Buenos Aires, Argentina – for reducing its infant mortality rate by 39% after analyzing healthcare data of pregnant women and using it to improve primary services;
- Fortaleza, Brazil – for using data-informed solutions to cut traffic fatalities by 57% in the past 10 years;
- Carlsbad, CA – analyzed their remote work policy, which saved the City more than $300,000 in office costs, reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 424 metric tons, and improved traffic for all residents;
- Charleston, SC – launched FloodStat to standardize and centralize how city departments track flood rescues;
- Córdoba, Argentina – saved $3.5 billion Argentine pesos (~$13.5 million USD) in just three years as a result of digital transformation work across 22 city government agencies;
- Mogi das Cruzes, Brazil – used demographic data, resident engagement strategies, and an evidence-based community planning approach centered on children to address inequalities and poverty in the redesign of an at-risk neighborhood; and
- Montevideo, Uruguay- developed transit intervention plans for 10 “hotspot” traffic areas to improve traffic flow and help save lives.